This article deals with the current problem – development of cultural and educational tourism industry. The information for the study was collected from the questionnaires of population of municipal districts of Russia, from the information provided by the Federal Service of State Statistics, and the results of the surveys conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM), etc.In the course of the study, the authors revealed that the diverge social groups of the Russian society perceive Russian cultural and educational potential, tourism service in the cities in a different way; the tendencies and basic principles of domestic tourism industry have been revealed. In the article the authors defined direct dependence between weak developed domestic infrastructure and stagnation of domestic tourism industry. The results of the study showed the stereotypes which tourists follow while choosing destinations for their trips. These stereotypes may be divided into the following groups: price, comfort, climate. They range in different social groups that lead to the market fluctuation of the domestic tourism industry.